Robin Hood Meets Little John (Campfire Story)

Deep in Sherwood Forest, long ago, lived an outlaw named ROBIN HOOD. He was the finest archer in all of England, and he lived in the greenwood with his band of MERRY MEN, dressed in green so they could hide among the leaves.

One fine morning, ROBIN HOOD grew bored. 'Lads,' he said to the MERRY MEN, 'I'm going off to look for an adventure. If I blow my horn three times, come running.' And off he went through the forest, whistling.

Before long he came to a wide, rushing stream. The only way across was a single log, just wide enough for one person at a time. ROBIN HOOD stepped onto one end. And at exactly the same moment, a stranger stepped onto the other end.

And what a stranger! He was the tallest man Robin had ever seen, seven feet tall if he was an inch, with shoulders as wide as a barn door and a big wooden staff in his hand.

'Step back, friend,' called Robin, 'and let me cross first.'

'I was here first,' said the stranger. 'You step back.'

'I'll do no such thing,' said Robin, and he put an arrow to his bow.

The stranger laughed. 'You'd shoot a man who only has a stick? That's a coward's trick.'

Robin turned red. 'You're right,' he said. He put down his bow, cut himself a good stout staff from an oak tree, and stepped back onto the log. 'Now we're even. Whoever knocks the other into the water wins the bridge.'

And so they fought, right there in the middle of the log. Whack! Clack! Thwack! The staffs flew so fast you could hardly see them. Robin landed a good knock on the big man's ribs. The big man landed a good knock on Robin's head that made his ears ring. Back and forth they went, wobbling and teetering over the rushing water, for a whole hour.

At last, the stranger swung his staff so hard that it caught ROBIN HOOD right off his feet, and into the stream he went. SPLASH!

Robin came up spluttering, with weeds in his hair and a fish flapping in his boot. And instead of being angry, he started to laugh. 'Well fought, stranger! You've won the bridge fair and square.' Then he waded to shore, put his horn to his lips, and blew three times.

Out of the trees came the MERRY MEN, twenty of them, all dressed in green. When they saw their leader soaking wet, they started toward the stranger. 'Shall we give him a dunking too?'

'No, no,' said Robin. 'He won fair. Stranger, what's your name?'

'John Little,' said the giant.

'John Little,' said Robin, 'you're the best fighter with a staff I've ever met. Will you join us in Sherwood, and help us take from the greedy rich and give to the poor?'

John Little thought about it. Then he grinned. 'I will.'

The MERRY MEN cheered. And Will Scarlet, who was always the joker, said, 'We can't call a man this big John Little. From now on, we'll call him Little John!'

And so they did. That night they had a great feast under the oak trees, with venison and bread and songs around the fire. Little John became Robin's best friend and right-hand man, and he never once let Robin forget who won that fight on the log.

And whenever ROBIN HOOD came to a narrow bridge after that, he always looked to see who was coming the other way first. Just in case. SPLASH!

Storyteller tips: if you have two staffs, act out the fight with a helper, slowly and safely, and let the "loser" fall dramatically. Make the most of the name joke at the end; the youngest Scouts love it.

Based on the ballad "Robin Hood and Little John" (Child Ballad 125).